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Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Wife says ex-poll officer to appear if summoned
By Lizanilla J. Amarga
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY -- Embattled former election commissioner Virgilio Garcillano is just in Mindanao and will surface only if subpoenaed by the proper authorities, his wife said Tuesday.
Grace Garcillano said in a radio interview that she last met with her husband three or four days ago at their farm in Baungon, Bukidnon.
She said she is not sure if her husband would appear if summoned by the House of Representatives, which is investigating the alleged wiretapped conversations between the former election commissioner and President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to rig the 2004 presidential elections.
Reports said some opposition officials are wooing Garcillano to testify against Arroyo.
Grace said she is having difficulty staying in touch with her husband. She said they fear talking using her husband's phone for fear that it is bugged.
"My husband cannot call me using his cellphone. He can only contact me using another person's phone; we no longer have any privacy," she said in the dialect.
She said her husband sometimes borrows a mobile phone from a friend or have someone contact her if he has something to tell her.
There is no truth to claims that Garcillano has left the country with First Gentleman Mike Arroyo or that the election official took off through the country's backdoor, added Grace.
"That is not true as we have an agreement that he would only stay here in Mindanao," she said.
When asked if Garcillano was planning to testify at the House hearing on the scandal, Grace said only her husband could answer this question.
"He (Garcillano) is now a private citizen and a subpoena is needed," she said, adding her husband would not as yet surface as it is still not the proper time.
Grace debunked reports that Garcillano and President Arroyo met here in Cagayan de Oro over the weekend even lashing out at those who "fabricated" the reports.
"That is not true. The one who made up such stories has some eye problem that he could not see clearly," she said.
She recalled how there were even reports that Mike Arroyo accompanied Garcillano but that her husband was just in his office.
"The one monitoring has weak eyes...First Gentleman has a companion who has the same body build as Garcillano," she said.
Concerning Garcillano's security, Grace said her husband is basically on his own and is just relying on the help of some friends.
"Garcillano is trying to make it on his own. He comes from a poor background and is willing to even sleep on grasses. He is a survivor. He is unlike those officials who could not even sleep without a bed foam," she said.
Asked if she knew of any opposition official that has approached her husband over the possibility of inviting him to become a witness against Arroyo, Grace there were plans but these were not conclusive.
She said there is no truth to reports that Arroyo was trying to contact her husband as the President is "not stupid" to do so. (Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro/Sunnex)
(June 22, 2005 issue)
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Arroyo aide justifies release of tape